Lumia 521 for development?

I really want to get into wp8 development but I don't have a windows phone yet. I could use the emulator but I want to add camera integration into my app. I was looking around for a cheap windows phone and I came across the Lumia 521. Would this be a good choice to use to develop an app on? Also, I see that it's a t-mobile no contract phone. If I don't set up any pre-paid data/minutes, will I still be able to use most of the windows phone 8 features (obviously I won't be able to makes calls send texts etc.etc.) for testing apps? In other words, I won't have to do any specific activation or anything else that comes with a price to be able to use the windows phone os, correct?

I think you should be fine with Lumia 521 for making a camera app. It will have the least specs of any of the WP8 devices, so your app, if it uses proper design and developer guidelines should work well on any other higher end devices.An example would be the dimensions of the screen are always approximately 16:9. (800x480, 1280x720, 1280x768) . if your app is based on 800x480, it should scale up to higher ones.

I am not very sure about T-MObile since I live outside US and leave it to others for the reply.

Having a dev account and the device is all you need. You don't need to activate service on it. Your plan sounds to me like it can work. When it comes to testing how your app looks in other resolutions, you can do that through the emulator.

I have an app that uses the camera (flash, actually) and was having a problem with it on Nokia 520's, in particular, because it doesn't have a flash. The remote access system lets you remote into a real phone, install your app and see how it works. It's slow, but invaluable for the right problem.